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Topic Review (Newest First)

05-10-2013 07:19 PM

snakeskin

I think that the coconut fiber has obstructed the flow a little. The flow is about a third of what it used to be... the flow before was a little too powerefull though... so I don't really mind.

05-10-2013 07:08 PM

snakeskin

Well I did it... what do you think?

05-10-2013 01:35 AM

wicca27

down side to coconut fiber would be it will break down over time i say stainless steel or plastic mesh

05-10-2013 12:40 AM

Hilde

Quote:

Originally Posted by snakeskin

I like the idea of the x stitch. I have never hear of super gel before. Where can I get it?

Oops! Meant super glue gel which can be found at stores like dollar tree and walmart.

05-09-2013 04:39 AM

snakeskin

I like the idea of the x stitch. I have never hear of super gel before. Where can I get it?

05-09-2013 02:13 AM

Hilde

I would get some plastic xstich material and glue some ferns to it with super gel. You could use pop sickle sticks in the substrate to tie. it down. Thus it wouldn't be against the intake.

05-08-2013 11:40 PM

snakeskin

Quote:

Yeah, I think almost anything covering the intake has the potential to get clogged

Good point!

Quote:

Maybe you can just do it on the upper part, and leave the intake as it is, so that you can periodically take off the covering and rinse it out. As the ferns grow in, they will probably cover the opening in shadows, so once it's darked with biofilm and such, it probably won't really be noticeable.

I think that is a good idea! I can leave the filter material... its gotten quite dark around the water intake anyway!

As far as the plants are concerned, is it ok to have java fern under a fairly strong current? The water would pretty much be dumping down on them the whole time... in my mind it will look like plants being pushed down by the water of a stream.

I want to do this project in the next few days so I will for sure post pictures!

05-08-2013 11:16 PM

lochaber

Yeah, I think almost anything covering the intake has the potential to get clogged.

Maybe you can just do it on the upper part, and leave the intake as it is, so that you can periodically take off the covering and rinse it out. As the ferns grow in, they will probably cover the opening in shadows, so once it's darked with biofilm and such, it probably won't really be noticeable.

If you do go with that, let us know how it works (and maybe post pics )

05-08-2013 10:10 PM

snakeskin

Hide my filter using coconut fiber and plants

Hey I am wanting some help from you guys to help me think this one idea through.

I bought some java ferns that were planted on coconut fiber that was rolled into a cylinder. The java ferns are growing beautifully on it and this gave me an idea.

You see, recently I acquired some shrimp, so I did the logical thing and zip tied some filter material over the water intake so that shrimplets wouldn't be sucked in (photo below). It has been working but it is horribly ugly and distracting as is the entire filter honestly.

So this leads me to my idea, what if I took of the filter material and added a coconut fiber layer around the whole filter and then plant the java ferns or moss on it... It would eventually fill in and look like a nice dense jungle. I added a pic of my idea below as well.

Feedback please! My only concern is that coconut fiber might be too thick around the water intake and might put a large burden on the filter.